Observations as I follow God through the Chronological Bible 

Genesis 9:8-17 

If God established a covenant with Adam and Eve, it’s not recorded within the first nine chapters of the Bible. The first recorded covenant is with Noah, his family, and every living creature on the ark with Noah. In this covenant, God promised to “never again” destroy all life with a flood.  

Most are familiar with the covenant of law he later made with Jacob’s children (who became the nation of Israel) contained a blessing for obedience and a curse for disobedience. The covenant God made after the flood is different in several ways.   

First, the covenant of law is limited to the children of Jacob and their descendants. The covenant established after the flood applies to every living creature (human and animal) and their descendants.  

The covenant of law limited what the children of Jacob could and could not do. The first covenant God made limits God’s actions and expanded human authority to protect ourselves from murderers. But there are no limitations on the actions of all living creatures.  

With the covenant came a sign. God said, “I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life.”  

God set the sign of a rainbow in the sky for his benefit, not ours. We have no bearing on whether God will keep his promise to “never again” flood the earth. As long as he lives, he will see the sign he set in the sky and remember his covenant.  

The rainbow assures us God will never flood the earth again. But it doesn’t matter if we see the sign or not. It doesn’t matter if we remember God’s promise. We cannot restrain his actions. The only power great enough to control God’s actions is his covenants and his integrity.